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Hawaii’s World
A few years back my wife and I found ourselves booked into a Denver hotel where a Boys and Girls Club convention also was booked. Boys and Girls Club
has grownWe winced at imaginings of teen-agers tearing through the halls and elevators, noisy in the public rooms and just generally being teen-agers.
Not to worry. These were for-real teen-agers, full of zest and vinegar, but among the friendliest, most courteous and best-mannered young people that one could hope to meet.
That experience helped me understand why the national treasurer of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America was dismayed to find no chapter here, and put pressure on his Honolulu son-in law, Charles Spalding, to get one started.
The handsome Waiola Street club near Washington Intermediate School in the McCully district first opened in 1976 with a gym, craft center, library/meeting room, kitchen, social games, rooms and offices.
Though then called a Boys' Club, it offered a variety of programs for youngsters (girls as well as boys) of ages 7 to 17 at $1 a year dues. It soon attracted a large and stable membership that continues to average 1,500 annually and hasn't dropped off since dues were increased to $10 in 1997. Average daily attendance is about 240.
The original hall has been extensively modernized. It was rededicated in 1997 as the Charles C. Spalding Clubhouse. An adjacent free-standing Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Teen Center is an addition reflecting the growth of community philanthropic interest in supporting the clubs. It allows teens to have activities separate from younger members with differing interests.
There now are operations on Kauai as well as Oahu with about 5,000 total members plus 3,000 to 4,000 more in outreach programs. More youngsters drop in to clubhouses than are members.
In all cases there is no obligation to join. No one forces or even leans on students to go to a clubhouse. It is simply there, offering togetherness programs and guidance to those who want them. Some of the participating students themselves develop into role models for others.
Though girls always have been welcome, recent efforts have been made to add more programs to help them escape from gangs, early pregnancy, disease and home abuse.
Other Oahu clubhouses are near Ilima Intermediate School at Ewa Beach, near Nanakuli High School and near Waianae Elementary. Operations opened at Aliamanu and Waialua in 1994 had to be closed last year following the loss of state funding.
THERE are two Kauai locations, one near Kapaa High School, the second at Waimea. A Hilo club has been considered along with other neighbor island locations. Funding always is a major consideration.
The guiding mission statement for the clubs is: "To help youth of all backgrounds develop the qualities and values needed to become responsible citizens and leaders, by offering quality programs and services, through a safe and caring environment." A special responsibility is acknowledged to assist the disadvantaged.
Some of Honolulu's foremost citizens have pitched in to help the clubs succeed. Government funding for the clubs has been important. A major private fund-raiser is an annual outdoor celebration called "A Walk in the Country," to be held this Saturday evening at Lanikuhonua.
A.A. Smyser is the contributing editor
and former editor of the the Star-Bulletin
His column runs Tuesday and Thursday.